Rangers supporters have taken to Twitter to react over seeing Nikola Katic lose his squad number.
The Ibrox club signed USA international James Sands on a two-year loan deal on Wednesday afternoon.
Nineteen is the number that Sands has been given at Rangers.
However, that squad number was previously assigned to Nikola Katic, the towering Croatian defender who is on loan at Hajduk Split.
Katic was a massive player for a couple of years during Steven Gerrard’s reign in Glasgow, but injury resulted in him falling down the pecking order.
And Rangers supporters on Twitter believe that Giovanni van Bronckhorst has effectively ended his career in Scotland by making his number available to the new signing.
Here’s what they’re saying:
Finished?
Well, it certainly appears as if the central defender is finished at Rangers, indeed.
The 25-year-old, who cost £2 million back in 2018, is out of contract with the Premiership champions this summer and with his number given elsewhere, it’s a relatively clear indication that his race is run.
However, as the Rangers supporters illustrated here, Katic remains a somewhat popular figure among the fanbase despite the fact he’s currently not at the club.
He deserves a bit of sympathy because, as mentioned, injury is the leading factor as to why he declined in Scotland.
Prior to being injured, his partnership with Connor Goldson had looked extremely solid on quite a few occasions – particularly when Gerrard’s side were in the Europa League.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
